Faithful fans braved the elements to soak in Frozen Fenway

It was a freezing-cold night for all in attendance at Frozen
Fenway on Saturday. (Photo: Dave Arnold/New England Hockey
Journal)

BOSTON -- Fenway Park has been home to some of
the greatest memories in baseball history.

There was Carlton Fisk’s dramatic home run
off the left field foul pole in 1975. There was Dave Roberts’
steal of second base that began the Red Sox historic comeback
against the Yankees in the 2004 ALCS. And there was, most recently,
the clinching of a third World Series title in the last decade just
back in October.

In recent years, America’s most beloved
ballpark has also played host to a handful of memorable hockey
games.

Saturday marked the third time in four years that
Hockey East took center stage as part of Frozen Fenway. With
temperatures well below freezing, the underground concourse was the
place to be before Merrimack took on its longstanding rival,
Providence, in the opener.

31,569 fans were announced in attendance for the
doubleheader, but the cold kept the park from filling up to near
its capacity over the course of the night.

Huddled together in front of the main concession
stand behind home plate was the family of Providence star junior
forward Ross Mauermann. His parents and cousins from Janesville,
Wisc., were joined by a group of family members from Georgia.

“It’s cold,” A.J. Mauermann
said. “My legs are starting to freeze.”

Those were the sentiments of many who braved the
elements as hockey returned to Fenway. For a family from Wisconsin,
their experience at the old ballpark drew a comparison to one of
that area’s signature sporting venues.

“It’s beyond belief. It feels like
Lambeau Field (home of the NFL’s Green Bay Packers), in the
cold, freezing out here. … Hopefully it doesn’t snow
out here, but it’s going to be great.”

The event, of course, also drew a large crowd of
local fans, including Merrimack alum Nicole McGrain of Methuen,
Mass., who is very familiar with the park as a season ticket holder
for Red Sox home games.

“(My husband and I) thought it would be
pretty cool to come here for hockey,” McGrain, who was in the
stands for the opening game of the World Series against St. Louis
back in October, said. “It’s completely different
seeing a hockey rink on the field that the Red Sox just won the
World Series. … It brings you back to that game with the
excitement in the air, the fans cheering.”

Escorted by his parents, fellow Warrior fan Colin
Nally of Georgetown, Mass., was excited to see Fenway transformed
into a winter wonderland after attending countless Red Sox games
during his childhood. “It’s a little bit of a
mismatch,” he said.

Shrewsbury High student Jack Snyder’s
father John played for Boston College in the 1960s, so Eagle hockey
has been in his blood for his entire life. Even though this marks
the Eagles’ third game at Frozen Fenway, hockey at the park
still has quite a magical feel.

“It’s so cool,” Snyder said,
standing in the back of the center field Big Concourse.
“I’ve been to so many Red Sox games that it’s
weird to see, but I love it.”

A great Red Sox fan, Snyder attended several
games at Fenway during the year and found himself thinking back to
the summer months. Returning to the park in the future will always
have a different feel, as Snyder claimed he “will never be
able to look at the pitcher’s mound the same again”
after seeing ice spread across the infield.

As for what he was most looking forward to about
the day?

“I just really hope BC can pull off a win
because I’m sitting in this cold for seven hours.”